Electrolytic apparatus.



Patented May 6, I902.

c. J. REED. ELECTROLYTIC APPARATUS.

(Application filed Aug. 1, 1901.)

2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

INVENTOR WITNESSES Patented May 6, I902- 6. J. REED.

ELECTROLYTIC APPARATUS.

(Application filed Aug. 1. 1901.)

2 SheetsSheet 2.

(No Model.)

INVEIV TOR WITNESSES I T OBI/E r.

Unirrnn STATES- P TENT @rrrcn.

CHARLES J. REED, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

ELECTROLYTIC APPARATUS.

SPEQIFIGATIGN forming part of Letters Patent No. 699,415, dated May 6, 1902.

Application filed August 1,- 1901. Serial No. 70,537. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES J. Hum), a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadeh phia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Electrolytic Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to electrolytic apparatus, and particularly to such apparatus as employs mercury either alone or in conjunction with solid metal bodies as one of the electrodes.

The object of my invention is to promote the electrolytic action by providing a maximum exposure of the electrolyte to the mer cury in the electrolytic operation and to also promote the expeditious removal of the resulting amalgam.

WVith these ends in view I have devised the means shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a sectional view of one form of apparatus suitable for practicing my invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of a modified form of apparatus, and Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view taken on line (I; mof Fig. 2. Fig. 4: is a detail side elevation of one of the metal electrodes shown in Fig. 2. view of a series of cells, each of which is substantially like that shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view of a portion of the apparatus shown in Fig. 5.

Referring now particularly to Fig. 1, a re ceptacle 1 of suitable material is provided with a plurality of recesses or pockets 2 in its bottom, which are filled with mercury 3, the mercury being sufficient in amount to project above the tops of the pockets and form a continuous body across the receptacle] Above the mercury is a liquid electrolyte l, the separation of which into its constituent elements may be effected bymy present invention. Located in this electrolyte are a plurality of porous cups 5, the bottoms of, which terminate above the mercury 3, and in, each of these cups is located an electrode'6, of

carbon or other suitable electronegative material. The liquid insidethe cups is the same as that outside of them. Journaled in brackets 7 which are suitably supported upon the receptacle 1, is a shaft 8, having two pairs of arms 9, which support at their outer ends two Fig. is a plan bars orbeams 10. Depending from each of the beams 10 is a set of rods 11, to the lower ends of which are fastened metal electrodes 12 in the form of plates. These arms 11' and the plates are so disposed along the beams 10 that as the shaft 8 is oscillated back and forth in its bearings by means of a suitable handle 13 each set of plates 12 is alternately dipped into the mercury in the cups 2 and raised into the electrolyte'at. Since the carbon electrodes 6 and the mercury 3 constitute theterminals of a suitable source of electrical energy 14, the current passing through the electrolyte will serve to decompose it,'and the mercury will receive the metallic element or elements thusseparated from the liquid. The resultin g gaseous products which will collect in the porous cups 5 may be drawn off by means of a pipe 15 and branchpipes 16. The moving of the plate electrodes 12 into the mercury serves both to wash off the electrolytic deposit and also to provide a fresh coating of mercury to receive a new deposit when the plates are again raised from the mercury into the electrolyte. may be replaced by mercury continuously or from time to time by means of suitable inlet and outletpipes (notshown) or in any other convenient manner, I

In the form of the invention shown in Figs.

2, 3, and 4 the receptacle 17 is provided witha plurality of channels '18, that communicate at their ends with open channels 19, the mercurry 3 therein being above the lower edge of the sides of the receptacle, so that it serves as a seal to prevent the escape of the electrolyte 4. Instead of the vertical reciprocating plate electrodes 12 (shown in Fig. 1) I here provide a plurality of disk electrodes" 21,'that are mounted upon a shaft 22, having suitable hearings in the sides of the receptacle 17. These electrodes 21, which may be provided with curved grooves or channels 23,

areelectrically connected by means of the I shaft and are of such diameter as to dip into them'ercury'in the channels 18 as the shaft is rotated The mercury will be thus taken up bythe disks and through the action of the grooves or channels 23, that project inward from the peripheries nearly to the centers of the disks, the mercury will be evenly distributed over the surfaces of the disks as they rotate through the electrolyte and will receive the solid deposit resulting from its decomposition. The receptacle 17 may also be provided withacover 24,ha vingafiange 25, that projects into the electrolyte. Inside the flange 25 carbon or othersuitable electronegative electrodes 26 project into the electrolyte 4 and between the electrodes 21. These electrodes 26 are all connected in parallel to the positive'pole of the source of electrical energy 14.

For the purpose of drawing off the gaseous products of decomposition that collect within the flange 25 I provide a pipe 27, which may lead to any suitable receptacle for storing the gas, provided it is desired to pre serve it.

Referring now to Figs. 5 and 6, I have shown apparatus suitable for employment in'producing sodium hydrate and chlorin from aqueous solutions of sodium chlorid or for other kindred operations, the apparatus consisting of five cells suitably combined with each other and with other devices so as to secure the results desired. The reducing-cells I designate, respectively, as a, b, and c and the oxidizing-cells, respectively, as d and 6. Each of these cells is shown as having electrodes of the same construction and arrangement as those shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4:, except that in this case each cell is provided with three metal disk electrodes and two carbon electrodes. A channel 19 at one side is here shown as common to the cells a and d, and cells I) and e also have a common channel 19 at one side. The shafts 22 may, if desired, be all rotated by means of belts from a single counter-shaft connected to the pulleys 22?, and in order to provide a circulation of the amalgam resulting from the electrolytic process I providea transfer device 28 in the form ofa wheel of non-conducting material having a series of pockets 29, which dip into the mercury 3 in the channel 19 pertaining to each of the oxidizing-cells d and'e and also into one of the channels 19 pertaining to the circulationwvithout the transfer of electrical energy. The transfer of the electric current from cell a.- to cell d and from cell 1) to cell c is eifected, however, by the mercury or amalgamias it flows between the cells in a continuous body. The amalgam maybe transferred from the channel 31, into'which' it is thrown by the last transfer device 28 of the series, back to the cell a by means of a pipe 32 or other-suitable conduit. This apparatus just described may be employed for the treatment of any decomposable electrolyte where the curing the constituent elements for use in other processes of manufacture or for regenerating the electrolyte for use in a battery,

is particularly efficient by reason of thelarge' amount of surface of mercury which is exposed to the electrolyte and the efficient and rapid removal of the resulting amalgam from the solid electrodes.

The apparatus may obviously be modified in many particulars without departing from the invention, and I therefore desire it to be understood that the invention is not limited to details as regards form, dimensions, or arrangement-of parts, except in so far as limitations may be imposed by the state of the art.

I claim as my invention- 1. In an electrolytic apparatus, a recepta: cle or compartment containing a body of mer cury and a body of decomposable liquid superposed thereon, in combination with one or more electrodes of electronegative material and one or more disk-shaped metal electrodes and means for moving said metal electrodes into and out of said body of mercury and within said receptacle or compartv ment to effect a distribution of mercuryoveu the same.

2. In an electrolytic apparatus,the combination with a receptacle or'compartmentcontaining a decomposable liquid and'a body of mercury, of one or more electrodes'ofw electronegative material, one or more disk-shaped IIO metal electrodes and means for moving the metal electrode or electrodes within said receptac-lc or compartment, into and out of the body of mercury and through the liquid to be decomposed.

8. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combination with a receptacle or compartment having a body of mercury and a body of superposed electrolyte, of a plurality of electrodes of electronegative material projecting intothe electrolyte, a plurality of disk-shaped metal and a superposed liquid electrolyte, of a plu rality of electrodes of electronegative material projecting into the electrolyte, a plurality of metal electrodes located in the electrolyte and alternately disposed with reference to the electronegative electrodes and means Whereby the metal electrodes may be moved within said receptacle or compartment, through the electrolyte andinto and out of the mercury.

5. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combination with a receptacle having a plurality of open pockets containing mercury and having a body of liquid electrolyte above the mercury, of a plurality of plates of electronegative material projecting into the electrolyte, a plurality of metal disks alternating with the electronegative plates, a shaft on which the disks are mounted and means for rotating the shaft to move the edges of the disks into and through the mercury.

6. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combination with a receptacle having a plurality of open pockets containing mercury and having a body of liquid electrolyte above the mercury, of a plurality of electrodes of electronegative material projecting into the electrolyte, a plurality of metal disks provided with side channels, a shaft on which said disks are mounted and means whereby said shaft may be rotated to move the edges of the disks through the mercury.

'7. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combination with a receptacle having a plurality of open pockets containing mercury and having a body of liquid electrolyte above the mercury, of a plurality of electrodes of electronegative material projecting into the electrolyte, a plurality of metal disks provided with side grooves extending from their peripheries toward their centers, a shaft on which said disks are mounted and means whereby said shaft may be rotated to move the edges of the disks through the mercury.

8. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combination with a receptacle having a plurality of open pockets containing mercury and having a body of liquid electrolyte above the mercury, of a plurality of electrodes of electronegative material projecting into the electrolyte, a plurality of metal disks provided with curved guides extending from their peripheries toward their centers, a shaft on which said disks are mounted and means whereby said shaft may be rotated to move the edges of the disks through the mercury.

9. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combination with a reducing-cell and an oxidizingcell each of which is provided with a body of mercury, a superposed body of electrolyte, one or more stationary electrodes of electronegative material and one or more movable metal electrodes, of means for transferring the amalgam from the one cell to the other without thereby effecting a transfer of electric current.

10. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combination with a reducing-cell and an oxidizingcell each of which is provided with a body of mercury, a superposed body of liquid electrolyte, one or more electrodes of electronegative material, one or more metal electrodes, of a transfer device and means for rotating the metal electrodes in contact with the mercury and the electrolyte and means for operating the transfer device to transfer the resulting amalgam from the one cell to the other without thereby effecting a transfer of electric current.

11. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combi nation with one or more oxidizing-cells and a greater number of reducing-cells each of which contains mercury, a superposed body of liquid electrolyte, one or more electrodes of electronegative material and one or more metal electrodes, of means for moving the metal electrodes through the electrolyte and the mercury to promote electrolytic action, an uninterrupted channel for the flow of amalgam between each reducing-cell and the next succeeding oxidizing-cell in the series and means for transferring the amalgam progressively from each oxidizing-cell to the next reducing-cell of the series Without thereby transferring electric current.

12. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combi nation with a series of reducing-cells and oxidizing-cells, the former being greater in number than the latter, a single body of mercury located in and between each reducing-cell and the next oxidizing-cell in the series, a liquid electrolyte, one or more stationary electrodes of electronegative material and one or more movable metal electrodesin each cell and a non-conducting device for transferring the amalgam, produced by electrolytic action, from each oxidizing-cell to the neXt reducingcell in the series without thereby transferring electrical energy.

13. In an electrolytic apparatus, a receptacle having an external, open channel along at least two of its sides and a plurality of Wells in the bottom that communicate at their ends with said channel, a body of mercury in said channel and Wells and a body of liquid electrolyte above the mercury, in combination with electrodes of electronegative material and metal electrodes and a cover having a sealing-flange that projects downwardly.

into the electrolyte.

14. In an electrolytic apparatus, a receptacle having a plurality of channels or Wells in its bottom and two outside, open channels with which the ends of the interior channels connect and a cover having a sealing-flange that projects downwardly at a distance from the side Walls.

15. In an electrolytic-apparatus, the combination with one or more reducing-cells and one or more oxidizing-cells containing mercury and a liquid electrolyte and having external, open channels into which themercury flows, of a non-conducting wheelhavingpockets and projecting into the mercury in one channel adjacent to its end wall and means for rotating said wheel to transfer mercury to the adjacent channel in insulated portions.

16. In an electrolytic apparatus, the combione or more oxidizing-cells containing mernation with one or more reducing-cells and cury and a superposed electrolyte and having external, open channels into which the mercury flows but from which the electrolyte is excluded, a partition between each oxidizingcell and the next reducing-cell in the series and a wheel "having pockets and projecting into the mercury in each oxidizing-cell adjacent to the partition and means for rotating the wheel to transfer the mercury in insulated portions.

17. In an electrolytic apparatus, a plurality of reducing-cells, and a less number of oxidizing-eells each of which contains mercury and a liquid electrolyte, means for transferring the amalgam produced in the reducingcells to the next oxidizing-cells in the series and thereby transmitting the electrical en- 20 ergyand means for transferring the amalgam In testimony whereof I have hereunto sub- 35 scribed my name this 24th day of July, 1901.

CHARLES J. REED. WVitnesses:

J. O. MoRsE, BIRNEY HINES. 

